SOUVENIRS I, Down Country Roads:

Excerpt from the story, "Country Roads"

"Our farm road was made with branch gravel. This gravel was sandstone, and was soon ground into sand by the wheels of cars and wagons, making repair necessary. Gravel hauling was a project that we children enjoyed. The gravel was free, from the small creek that meandered past the old home site and barn and through the meadow. From there, it wound through the trees edging the fields and pasture. Small trickley streams and deposits of reddish sandstone gravel connected dark shady pools. Minnows darted in the pools, and water skippers scooted across the surfaces. These were fine places for summer wading..."

"The horses were hitched up, and with a load of shovels and children, the gravel wagon was driven to the creek. The team and wagon went right into the shallow water for easy loading. We heard the grating sound of shovels on gravel as we ran up and down the creek and played in the water."

This recipe from Souvenirs I has won raves:

LAZY APPLE BUTTER
1- 3 lb. jar applesauce
16 oz. frozen apple juice concentrate
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup ret hots candy (imperials)
1 tsp. cinnamon
dash salt

Mix all ingredients and pour into a deep 9 x 13 baking pan. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 2 hours or until desired thickness, stirring occasionally. Refrigerate, or use canning process. Serve with biscuits or toast. (Some readers have said they make it in an uncovered crock pot.) As an extra bonus, it will make your house smell delicious.

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SOUVENIRS II, The Fields of Home

Excerpt from the story, "The Pigs and the Sawmill"

"The fact that the pigs were free to roam around the sawmill led to an unusual incident. This apparently took place around the late 1920's or early 1930's, during the last days of prohibition. (Prohibition lasted thirteen years, ending in March of 1933, when Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Twenty-first Amendment.) In any case, an enterprising neighbor decided to go into the bootleg whiskey business. The sawmill was located well back up toward the Holler, far from the main road, and was probably closer to the neighbor's house than to Grandpa's. This was, no doubt, the reason the wily entrepreneur decided to hide his fermenting mash barrels in Grandpa's sawdust pile. No one knows how long the barrels were there before the hogs sniffed them out...."

This is a popular recipe, and can also be eaten as a taco salad or sloppy joe.

HOOSIER STRAW STACKS
1 cup chopped onion
2/3 cup chopped celery
2/3 cup chopped green pepper
1 Tbs. oil
2 lbs. ground chuck
1 Tbs. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2- 6 oz. cans tomato paste
1/2 cup catsup
2 cups water
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Dash Tabasco or hot sauce
Tortilla corn chips
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Sour cream

Cook vegetables in oil till tender. Brown beef separately. Drain beef and mix with vegetables, tomato paste, catsup, water, and seasonings. Simmer uncovered 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Adjust seasonings to taste. Serve on a pile of corn chips, with a sprinkle of cheese and a dollop of sour cream. For a taco salad, put lettuce under chips. Heat leftovers and serve on a bun for a delicious sloppy joe.

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SOUVENIRS III, Living in the Hills

Excerpt from the story, "Blackberry Jelly and Bread"

"As a child, I thought there could be no better snack than jelly and bread. The best kind was soft white store-bought Honey Crust bread, spread generously with Grandma Mundy's homemade jelly....In summer, Grandma sent us outside to avoid messing up her kitchen floor. "Now, run out in the yard," she would say as she handed out the jelly and bread, and we zipped out of the kitchen, with the screen door slamming behind us. We ate the treats with great relish, licking our fingers clean...."

"Grandma's wild blackberry jelly was a favorite, and it required considerable effort to produce. She braved chiggers, snakes, and scratches from sharp briars to harvest the wild berries. After washing the buckets from morning milking, Grandma would put one over her arm and set out around the hill in the early dew..."

This recipe reminds me of the sticky fingers of childhood. The small nutty shortbread cookies have the added flavor of your favorite jelly. If you happen to have homemade wild blackberry jelly and hickory nuts, you are in for an extra special treat.

THUMBPRINT COOKIES

1 stick of regular margarine, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 cup sifted flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans or hickory nuts
Jelly

Mix together first four ingredients. Stir in flour and salt. Form into small balls 1 inch in diameter, and roll in chopped nuts. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 5 minutes at 375 degrees. Remove from oven and quickly press thumb on top of each cookie. Return to oven and bake 8 minutes longer. Time precisely. Cool and place a small teaspoonful of jelly in each thumbprint. Makes about 2 dozen. Must be stored in a single layer.

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SOUVENIRS IV, Country Tales and Traditions

Excerpt from the story, "Shoe Stories From the 1940's"

I suppose, if all the shoes I have ever owned were lined up, they would tell my life story; of physical growth, economic situation, career, and lifestyle, as well as signs of the times....

I was eight years old in 1945 when (World War II) shoe rationing ended. It had been in effect for two or three years. Under rationing, each person received stamps permitting the purchase of three pairs per year. In the 1940‘s, we could never afford to have more than a couple of pairs a year anyhow. We got school shoes in the fall and summer shoes in the spring, and hoped they would last the season. New shoes were better than a new toy. Shoes were handed down in the family if there was any wear left in them.

We bought shoes at Ben Radcliff’s general store and ordered some by mail from the Sears Robuck or Montgomery Ward catalog. Mail-ordered shoes had to be returned if they didn’t fit, so buying them could be a long process. During the war, it was not always easy to find just what you wanted. Substitutions were sometimes shipped if an item was sold out. For that reason, we often sent second and third choices. If the size was right, we usually kept the shoes, even if they were not the exact color or style preferred.

STRAWBERRY PIE

1 small package strawberry Jello
½ cup sugar
2 Tbs. Cornstarch
Dash salt
2 cups cold water
1 qt. strawberries, stemmed and washed
1 baked pie shell

Mix dry ingredients together well in a saucepan. Add and stir in water. Cook and stir over medium heat till mixture boils. Cool to room temperature by setting pan in cold water if necessary. (Do not chill yet.) When cool, add to strawberries and toss to coat. Pour into baked pie shell and refrigerate. Serve with whipped cream.

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